<p>Hoping someone here can offer some insight or information. </p>
<p>My 20 year old son has been having an odd headache in the back of his head for 2 weeks now. It got so severe last Thursday that the health center sent him to the ER (pretty scary day for both of us!). He was thoroughly examined by 2 doctors and because he showed zero signs of menangitis and had no neurological symptoms he was released. The Attending physician spoke to me on the phone and said she was confident it was nothing requiring a CT scan. She gave him a series of neurological tests and because he passed them all with flying colors, she didn’t feel the need to give him “unnecessary radiation on his young, growing brain”. She suggested it was probably a really bad tension headache.</p>
<p>He has seemed ok for the week, until today. The headache is back and he is getting very frustrated and I am getting worried. He says the top of his neck also hurts, but it’s mostly the back of his head. He says he also gets a “stinging” sensation as well as pressure in his head. He did report these symptoms to the ER doctor last week.</p>
<p>Could this be related to a sinus issue? Or maybe he hurt his neck somehow and it’s causing head pain? The fact this has been present for 2 weeks concerns me. Not sure a sinus issue or neck issue would last this long?? </p>
<p>He has been examined by 3 doctors now - one on campus and 2 at the ER and they haven’t indicated anything serious (although I am a HUGE worrier). </p>
<p>Has he changed climates? Is it a drier climate? I know this will sound minor, but he needs to make sure he is hydrating a lot. Is his pillow and mattress okay? Sometimes this can be from sleeping funny and come from the neck. How are his shoulders are they tight? </p>
<p>He could try a massage. If he is holding a lot of extra stress in his jaw, this might cause strain and headache. Does he grind his teeth? He could try a mouth guard or bite plate for sleeping. It might help.</p>
<p>Suggest caffeine to him, as well. It helps with headaches tremendously. Coffee is better than, say, mountain dew, because it’s not full of sugar. Tea, too. Good luck. Headaches are hard to handle when you are a student.</p>
<p>It’s classically a tension headache when it’s at the back of head. There isn’t much there other than muscles and skull. It can be a fluid buildup but that’s rare, which I’m sure you’ll worry about - if you haven’t looked that up already, try intracranial hypertension. But it sounds from the vague description that it’s tension. </p>
<p>Tension in the shoulders translates into the musculature which attaches to the skull in back, particularly at the bony bumps behind the ears but all over. </p>
<p>He hasn’t changed climates and he is very good about hydration. He has been swamped at school but some of that has settled down a bit. Its just such a long time to be in pain.</p>
<p>@lergnon - I try not to look up too much - never a good thing. Maybe I’ll look that up but I would like to assume the doctors would have thought of that? Guess its never good to assume though.</p>
<p>@lergnom- I made the mistake of looking up inter cranial hypertension and now I will worry about that. Wouldn’t he have other symptoms?? He has an appointment with a neurologist tomorrow so I came down here to go with him. He is still dealing with this and I’m worried sick. </p>
<p>His symptoms are just so odd and all the doctors he has seen (4 at this point) don’t feel it’s anything “scary” but it’s hard to not worry about all the scary things. His head symptoms are just so odd and range from pain, pressure, shooting pains, tingling. He generally feels way better in the morning then gets worse as day proceeds. One of the doctors thinks he may have an irritated/entrapped nerve in his neck? I assume the specialist will check him out thoroughly. </p>
<p>I’m glad you’re seeing a neurologist. My son has chronic migraines and er docs usually aren’t that great at knowing how to deal with headaches. Get the ct scan done. Not that I think there is anything horribly wrong, but just so you know you’ve ruled out other things. My son got an mri as well which made me feel better. Have him take excedrin. Also I know this is weird but it helps - when you are with him tomorrow, rub and squeeze his feet while he keeps ice behind his neck. It helps the blood flow constrict. It could be a pinched nerve in his neck, shoulders or spine, he could be sleeping weird on his pillow, he could be allergic to some new food, he could be feeling stressed and carrying tension in his neck and shoulders. </p>
<p>Look up information on cluster headaches and see if it fits your symptoms. They are similar to migraines and more typically affect men. They typically center around one side of head and eye but can also present in the back of head.</p>
<p>I get the tension headaches, which start at the base of the skull on one side and eventually make their way up the skull, all the way to the eye on that side. They can be very debilitating.</p>
<p>A CT requires a doctor’s order, and there has been intense criticism of the over use of the CT scan and its accompanying radiation, so the patient cannot just demand one. However, seeing a neurologist is a good idea. If he wants a CT scan done, it will happen in very short order.</p>
<p>Hi - my younger son gets headaches just like this. They started when he was in HS. He can’t have an MRI (he has cochlear implants) - we even had him seen by his ENT wondering if his CIs might have been the issue (they weren’t). We tried many things related to diet - nothing seemed to work. Then one morning he was tired from a late night study session and drank a cup of coffee and hasn’t had problems since then. That said, I too am glad you’re seeing a neurologist. I’d definitely have the CT scan done - better safe than sorry. Keep us posted?</p>
<p>I’m glad he is going to another doctor. A friend of ours 12 year old kept having headaches and the doctors said it was just “stress” . The mom insisted on a CT scan. Tuns out the it was brain cancer. She is now in her second round of chemo. While I doubt that’s what your son has it’s better to check it out just to make sure. </p>
<p>Have him seen by an ENT a really good one who will do a CT of the sinuses and who will check for reflux. Also, see a neurologist whose specialty is headaches. There are preventatives you can take but it requires someone who is very versed in this to do so as they are off label drugs. Go for extensive allergy testing with an allergist and get an Alcat test to look for foods that he maybe sensitive to. If these headaches continue keep trying because there is always a cause but it can take a long time to find it. My daughter suffered for years and we saw countless doctors until we solved the issue. Sinus infections can create headaches. Causes of sinus infections can be a sinus that does not drain correctly, allergies, or refluxing acid up into the sinuses. Doctors found strep in my D’s blood but ignored it because she was negative on a rapid strep test but we eventually found the source of the strep it was in her sinus. It was a very severe infection that multiple doctors missed including several ENTs that required surgery to remove. We later found out our daughter suffered from GERD which was creating infection in the sinuses. There is nothing worse than seeing your child in pain and you can’t find a cure. We went through a period of time where she had a dehabilitating headache for a year where she was hospitliized about every month to take the pain away. Best Wishes!</p>
<p>Tension headache is likely, but it could also be something as simple as the pillow he’s using or the angle at which he’s working on the computer. I am prone to torticollis (muscle spasm in neck that radiates up the back of the head) and it’s quite painful, causing nausea (similar in this respect to migraine). Using a very supportive pillow helps. Once the muscle clenches up, it can only be relieved with Flexiril to I try to avoid triggering the spasm.</p>
<p>Sounds like a tension head ache. Sinus, ear, eye related are normally in the front. Caffeine works temporily to relive symptoms. But finding and treating the cause leads to a cure. I had horrible head aches as a teen. Had a very big negative impact on my school work, social life and overall development. Turns out I was allergic to cats… </p>